University of Northern Colorado wins thriller with last-second shot in overtime

University of Northern Colorado senior guard Andre Spight shoots a last-second 3-pointer in overtime against North Dakota to seal the Bears' victory Saturday at Bank of Colorado Arena in Greeley.

Andre Spight has hit the shot hundreds of times. Maybe more.

You know the one — the clock has one tick left, you let a 44-foot, offbalance howitzer fly.

In his imagination, Spight's shot goes in every time.

Saturday night, it went in for real.

Count it.

Spight's heroics allowed the University of Northern Colorado men's basketball team to beat the University of North Dakota 94-91 in overtime.

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None of the 2,059 in attendance at Bank of Colorado Arena had left their seats.

All of them were standing when the shot left Spight's hands.

"Oh, lots of times," Spight said when asked how many times he's taken a last-second shot for fun. "It went in every time."

Off-balance or not, Spight conceded he never really saw his shot go in.

"It's all just a blank," he said.

The biggest blank was on the faces of the UND players, who had rallied in the second half to force the overtime after trailing by as many as 11.

Four UND players finished in double figures, led by a double-double by Conner Advants, who had 20 points and 10 rebounds.

Spight had tied the game at 91 with a pair of free throws — he also hit three straight to put UNC ahead 90-89 with 1 minute, 16 seconds left in overtime — but the Fighting Hawks had one last possession.

When UND's Cortez Seales missed a short jumper, UNC's Jonah Radebaugh pulled the rebound, fired the ball to freshman Jalen Sanders who saw Spight on the wing.

"I saw him cross halfcourt and threw it to him," Sanders said. "Then I stepped back and watched him shoot."

Spight, who finished with 34 points and six assists, said he looked up and saw three seconds left on the clock.

"Then I counted it down in my head … three, two, one and then I shot," Spight said. "I didn't see it go in."

After officials checked the video, the shot was officially good.

"I was always the kid who was messin' around, shooting," Spight said of re-living everybody's infamous winning shot.

"I'd get told to go out and work on my game, but I was always shooting," Spight added.

Against the Fighting Hawks, Spight was 10 for 21 from the floor, including 7 for 14 from long range. He also had six assists and two steals.

"At one time, I looked up and thought this is a tough way to make a living," a relieved UNC coach Jeff Linder said. "Then I figure if he makes that shot, I'll sleep well. If he doesn't, I won't sleep at all."

Linder and Bears can sleep on the victory, that puts them at 4-3 in Big Sky Conference action before going on a road trip. They're 13-7 overall. UND slipped to 2-5, 7-12.

"They went to work on us inside, and we need to work on that," said Sanders, who had eight points and five rebounds.

Sanders was the beneficiary of one of Spight's assits, taking a dish in the lane for a dunk shot.

"He probably should have really had 12 assists," Linder said of Spight's ability to find the open man.

A senior transfer from Arizona State University, Spight was in rhythm all night long.

"I would have liked to see him come in a few more steps (on the final shot), but he took it in stride, so I knew it had a chance," Linder said.

A layup by Spight with 58 seconds left in regulation put the Bears ahead 81-78 in a two-possession game,

The Bears maintained the lead on a pair of free throws by Radebaugh (11 points), and after UND's Geno Crandall hit the first of two free throws, the lead dwindled to two. He missed the second one, but Advants pulled the rebound and put up a hook shot that put tied it at 83 and sent the game into overtime.

"Give our guys credit … I told some of them to fix their faces because they had the faces of somebody who had just lost," Linder said. "We still had five minutes (of overtime) to play and had a chance."

Sanders and Spight conceded that nobody on the Bears bench was fatigued, instead anxious to claim a victory that looked to be in hand at one time.

The game was only twice in overtime — once on a dunk shot by Sanders — and at 91.

UND battled from behind most of the night, taking 71 shots from the field, but only 11 from 3-point range.

"We can celebrate this tonight, and then get ready to go on the road," said Linder, who gave Spight some last-second advice before a predictable postgame press conference.

"When in doubt, shoot it … and always be in doubt," Linder said.

BEST INDIVIDUAL PERFORMANCE

Andre Spight finished with a game-high 34 points, six assists and two steals. His three straight free throws in overtime with 1:16 left gave UNC a 90-89 lead, and another one of his free throws tied the game at 91.

TURNING POINT

It came in the second half when UND outscored the Bears 46-37 and forced overtime.

WHAT IT MEANS

The Bears remain just two games behind the Big Sky Conference leaders, but will go on the road to Idaho and Eastern Washington this week.